BERLIN, November 27, 2025 (WAFA)- Germany, Italy, France and Britain called on Israel to abide by international law and protect Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian Territory in a joint statement on Thursday.
“We - France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom - strongly condemn the massive increase of colonists’ violence against Palestinian civilians and call for stability in the West Bank,” said the foreign ministers of those countries in the statement.
They added that colonists’ attacks have reached unprecedented levels, noting that 264 attacks were recorded in October, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). This is the highest number of colonists’ attacks in a single month since the UN began documenting such incidents in 2006.
The ministers stressed that these attacks must cease, warning that they terrorize civilians and undermine ongoing efforts to achieve peace and lasting security. They said stability must be restored in the West Bank, noting that destabilizing actions jeopardize the success of the 20-point plan for Gaza and endanger prospects for long-term peace and security.
They urged the Israeli government to meet its obligations under international law and ensure the protection of the Palestinian population in the occupied Palestinian Territory, calling for accountability for those responsible for these crimes and for concrete measures to prevent further violence by addressing its root causes.
The ministers welcomed President Trump’s clear opposition to annexation plans and reiterated their rejection of any form of annexation—partial, total, or de facto—along with settlement policies that contravene international law.
They said that after the official approval of the E1 settlement project in August 2025—a project that would fragment the West Bank—more than 3,000 settlement units were approved over the past three weeks, raising the total approved since January to 28,000 units, a record high. They called on the Israeli government to reverse this policy.
The ministers described the Israeli government’s continued withholding of Palestinian tax revenues as unjustified, and said Israel must release the funds, expand correspondent banking arrangements between Israeli and Palestinian banks, and permit increased shekel transfers.
They affirmed that these steps are essential for Palestinian citizens and for the Palestinian Authority’s ability to provide public services.
They warned that weakening the Palestinian Authority obstructs its ability to implement its reform agenda and assume responsibilities in Gaza, as stipulated in UN Security Council Resolution 2803, and that a financial collapse of the Palestinian Authority would only undermine regional stability.
The ministers renewed their commitment to a just and comprehensive solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on the two-state solution, stressing that there is no alternative to this negotiated solution.
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